Ewha Hosts Academic Conference “Reflecting on the Literature of Lee O-young, a Leading Intellectual of the Era”
Ewha hosted an academic conference, “Reflecting on the Literature of Lee O-young, a Leading Intellectual of the Era,” to honor the academic achievements of Distinguished Professor Emeritus Lee O-young who passed away in February this year. Sponsored by Ewha Womans University and the Korean Language and Culture Center and co-hosted by the Department of Korean Language & Literature and the Society of Ewha Korean Language & Literature, the conference was held at the ECC theater on July 12 (Tue.), and live-streamed via an online channel to promulgate Lee’s life and world of literature.
Since 1966 when he started giving lectures at Ewha, the late Distinguished Professor Emeritus served various positions including a professor of the College of Humanities, a distinguished professor of Korean Language & Literature, and a distinguished professor emeritus. Moreover, outside the campus, he was appointed as the first Minister of Culture and known as the “intellectual of our time” based upon his ingenious discourses produced as a culture critic, journalist, educator, and creator. The event was organized to provide an opportunity to examine Professor Lee’s academic achievements throughout his entire life including literary critiques as well as creative works in various fields, such as poems, novels, essays, plays, etc., and honor his contribution to nurturing numerous students at Korean Language & Literature of Ewha and performing a significant role of solidifying the foundation of the Society of Ewha Korean Language & Literature, the host of this event.
President Eun Mee Kim, Director Kang In-sook of the YoungIn Museum of Literature
President Eun Mee Kim emphasized, “Professor Lee cultivated women of many accomplishments by instilling students at Ewha with cultural imagination and inspiration, made utmost efforts for the development of the university by consistently contemplating the vision for Ewha to pursue, and maintained a continued special relationship with Ewha.” Director Kang In-sook of the YoungIn Museum of Literature, the surviving spouse and culture critic, remarked, “Late Professor Lee pioneered the uncharted field of modern literature research after the country’s liberation and through his new methodology lectures, Ewha was able to take the lead in analytical criticism, semiotics, etc. I hope today’s conference will lead to various academic discussions.”
The first session titled “Remembering Late Professor Lee O-young” shed light on the life of Lee, who served as a literature critic, Minister of Culture, culture planner, critic of civilization, futurologist, supporter of talented individuals, and educator. In the subsequent session, presentations and vibrant discussions were provided to investigate the rationale behind his criticism, from revisitation of criticism between the 1950s and 1960s to the Digilog theory and futurology regarding AI in the 2000s. Lastly, in the third session titled “Lee O-young as a Writer and Exploration of His Literary World,” a meaningful attempt was made to officially highlight Lee’s literary works in depth by concentrating on those works that have largely been unnoticed over his criticism and culture theories through studies and discussions on his overall creation including plays, novels, poems, etc.
